Public policies set the context within which HIV prevention, identification and treatment occur. For[unreadable] example, state policies regarding needle exchange affect transmission rates among injecting drug[unreadable] users and policies on names reporting affect HIV testing behavior among individuals concerned with a[unreadable] potential breach in confidentiality. At the national and international levels, funding allocated for HIV[unreadable] care affects the numbers of individuals who receive effective treatment and can live prolonged and[unreadable] healthier lives. The Policy Core determines the consequences of public policies on HIV identification,[unreadable] prevention and treatment of HIV in local, state, national and international settings and provides this[unreadable] information to provide public health and governmental leaders with the evidence base necessary for[unreadable] well-informed policy-making. The specific aims of the Policy Core are:[unreadable] 1. Science: Identifying and promoting research on the determinants and consequences of[unreadable] public policies on HIV identification, prevention, and treatment of HIV disease, in both[unreadable] domestic and international settings;[unreadable] 2. Science: Applying policy research methods, such as cost effectiveness analysis (CEA) and[unreadable] geographic information systems approaches (CIS), to projects related to the Center's key[unreadable] scientific themes;[unreadable] 3. Networking: Convening policy makers, HIV investigators, and community stakeholders to[unreadable] identify and address critical HIV policy issues and identify the types of data needed to inform[unreadable] such issues;[unreadable] 4. Capacity Building: Enhancing the skill of our research partners to apply policy methods[unreadable] (e.g., CEA and GIS) to their HIV projects and to increasing the ability of our community[unreadable] partners to evaluate their prevention programs; and,[unreadable] 5. Capacity Building: Disseminating policy-relevant findings from intervention and policy[unreadable] research projects in different formats to domestic and international audiences.[unreadable]